


an angel ain't what i need

by mullethyuck



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: (as in sex jokes and references), Alternate Universe - Angels & Demons, Angels, Demons, Getting to Know Each Other, Hijinks & Shenanigans, M/M, Mild Sexual Content, Mythology References, Pre-Relationship, Seven Deadly Sins, Stupidity, ngl it takes a while to get to the hyuckhei but it's there i promise
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-26
Updated: 2020-08-26
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:28:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,327
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22484140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mullethyuck/pseuds/mullethyuck
Summary: Yukhei’s brow furrows. “So you're…”Donghyuck stops his pacing to face Yukhei. “I'm Wrath,” he says with a smile that's all teeth, sharp around the edges. “Nice to meet you. Don't piss me off.”
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Wong Yuk Hei | Lucas
Comments: 13
Kudos: 137
Collections: LucasFicFest





	an angel ain't what i need

**Author's Note:**

> aight so my prompt was basically hyuckhei falling in love even though one of them is an angel and the other's a demon which btw is SUCH a concept ugh prompter your mind <3
> 
> i'm just gonna throw it out there, this is loosely based off of christian mythology but the key word is "loosely" lmao don't take this too seriously it's borderline sacrilegious
> 
> shoutout to [isis](https://twitter.com/jenosglow) for being my lovely beta and [joji](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-uWlFq380M) for the title

Kun’s fidgeting with the handle of his sword. That's never a good sign.

It usually means he's about to say something Yukhei doesn't want to hear - so really, Yukhei isn't the least bit surprised when he steadies a hand on the glowing pommel of his sword and tells him, “I have a job for you.”

“A job?” Yukhei repeats, because he rarely gets specific assignments. As a Virtue, his area of expertise pretty much boils down to manifesting miracles at his fancy. He only gets orders directly from his Dominion if it's something big.

Said Dominion sighs like he would rather be doing anything else but this. “Look, Xuxi,” and oh shit, he used Yukhei’s real name, the name forbidden to humans, “I think it's best if you just show up.”

Well, that's a red flag. “You’re not gonna tell me why?” he asks, just to clarify.

Kun shakes his head. “Trust me on this one.”

And normally Yukhei would trust Kun with his life (figuratively speaking, since technically Yukhei isn't alive or dead), but the tone of his voice is mildly alarming. Even so, Yukhei knows better than to argue. “Okay. When and where?”

“In an hour. My office,” is all Kun says before spreading his wings and quite literally fleeing the scene. Yukhei groans. It’s gonna be a long day.

Unfortunately, though, the next hour goes by remarkably fast. Not that Yukhei has a great sense of time to begin with, considering angels have been around since before time was even invented. But like, it feels like it goes by fast. Maybe it's just nerves, but Yukhei’s not the type to get nervous over something like a personal assignment from his overseer. It's not like it came straight from God, or whatever.

Or maybe it did. “The Boss chose you specifically for this, so I need you on your best behaviour,” Kun says the moment he walks through the door.

Yukhei wants to say, _What do you mean He chose me?_ or _Best behaviour for what?_ but what he really says is, “Huh?”

Kun pinches the bridge of his nose. “Just shut up, I’ll explain when he gets here.”

Yukhei listens, because he is capable of doing that when his brain-to-mouth filter isn't malfunctioning. He stands there against the wall, wings rustling from how jittery he feels. He’s never liked standing around, waiting. He needs to be in constant motion, and he can't very well do that in Kun’s neatly arranged corner office. Not without pissing him off, anyway.

He's distracted from that particular dilemma when the door swings open, hitting the wall with a bang, and a boy steps through and sits in front of Kun’s desk with a level of theatrics that is, frankly, unwarranted for such a mundane action. Yukhei’s about to say something, but Kun beats him to it.

“Hello, Donghyuck. Nice to see you,” he says amiably.

“Hey, Kun. Been a minute, hasn't it?” the guy - Donghyuck, apparently - replies. He puts his feet on the desk.

Kun frowns. “Twelve thousand years, to be exact.”

“And you haven't aged a day!” Donghyuck says way too loudly. “Damn, what's the skincare like up here? That fucking eternal fire dries me out like you would _not_ believe.”

Yukhei can actually see Kun’s eye start to twitch. And, hold on. Did he say eternal fire?

Yukhei doesn't realize he's said that out loud till Donghyuck turns and narrows his eyes at him. “Yeah. What about it?” he quips, flicking his bangs out of his face. Which is fine, that's normal, but what is decidedly _not_ normal is the massive 666 tattooed above his right eyebrow that takes up half his forehead.

“Holy fuck, you're a demon?” Yukhei blurts out because once again his mouth has a mind of its own. Kun looks like he's about to have an aneurysm, if that were physically possible.

Donghyuck, on the other hand, is losing it. “Oh my god, you're officially my new favourite angel,” he says between wheezes. “I don't even have wings, what did you think I was?” He shakes his head. “I can't believe you just said ‘fuck’ in front of your Dominion.”

“Me either,” Kun says pointedly.

Donghyuck ignores him. “What's your name?” he asks Yukhei.

Naturally, he says, “Yukhei.”

Donghyuck smirks, and Yukhei notices the tiny fangs that stick out over his bottom lip. “Your _real_ name.”

Kun gives him a look that says _If you tell him that I will personally make sure you regret it,_ but Yukhei’s nothing if not consistent. Consistently stupid, that is. “Xuxi.”

Donghyuck smiles even bigger at him, then directs his attention back to Kun. “I want this one.”

“Huh?” Yukhei says for the second time in a span of five minutes, because he's intelligent and can keep up with what's going on around him.

Kun drags a hand down his face like he's given up. (Which, honestly, it's admirable he's lasted this long dealing with this shit.) “Let me explain.”

Donghyuck holds up a hand to stop him. “Don't worry, babe, I got this.” Kun looks absolutely scandalized at the pet name, which shocks him into compliance. “Basically, the Boss upstairs and the Legend himself want us to have a little taste of what the other side is like. It's been a long ass time since we fell from heaven, y'know? The memories are getting hazy.”

“Okay?” Yukhei doesn't know what to say to that.

Donghyuck gets up, standing a few feet away from Yukhei. “It's a buddy system, dude. We're all gonna pair up and hang out and I think your Boss wants it to be some kind of sadistic punishment but really we just wanna fuck with some angels. It's so entertaining to make your lives hell.” He winks, and Yukhei does not think about how attractive it is. Not at all.

Kun’s finally had enough. “That's a very crude way to put it, but he’s right, more or less. I called you up here to help assign angels to demons you think would be a good match, as the Boss requested, but Donghyuck here already started.”

Donghyuck closes the distance between them, propping his arm against Yukhei’s bicep. “It’s you and me, babe.”

“What about the others?” Yukhei asks, more out of confusion than curiosity. Also to avoid thinking about the fact Donghyuck called him “babe,” but whatever. He did the same thing to Kun, it's fine.

Kun cuts Donghyuck a look. “Please explain to him what he needs to do.”

Donghyuck rolls his eyes, then looks up at Yukhei. “Alright, big guy. I have some friends - six, to be exact - that need buddies, too. Kun here wants you to help him pair them up, since you know everybody ‘cause you're like the nicest guy ever. His words, not mine.”

“Go on,” Kun prompts.

Donghyuck steps away from Yukhei, holding up a finger as he starts pacing. “First is Jaemin, or as you may know him, Pride. You know the expression ‘pride comes before the fall?’ Yeah, that's all him. Loves hyping people up just to watch them crash and burn. Also the reason sequels are never as good as the original, and boy bands never last long.”

“Number two,” he continues, lifting another finger. “Jeno, also known as Lust. Loves tormenting teenagers and rich old men especially. Spent the last 8,000 years perfecting his innocent smile, and it works every time.” Donghyuck’s dark eyes flash with something like mischief, but then he moves on. “Pornhub’s been great for business, he gets people into some freaky shit I wish I’d gone all of eternity without knowing.”

He holds up a third finger. “Mark, my man Gluttony. He's mostly a glutton for glory, honestly.” Donghyuck snorts. “But he gets a kick out of getting people hooked on the weirdest shit. He inspired a whole TV show, actually - it's just people talking about their weird addictions and it's kind of sick but also really entertaining. This one dude eats mattress stuffing all day every day, what the fuck. I dunno how Mark does it, he's a genius.”

Donghyuck gives up on the finger thing at this point, partially because it's not worth the effort but also he’s pretty sure Yukhei can count. “Then there’s Chenle, alias Greed. A rich motherfucker who loves watching humans try to get on his level. They never will, obviously, but that's what makes it fun. Plus it's kind of pointless for humans since they can't take it with them when they join us downstairs.” He points at the floor for emphasis.

“And Jisung, or as humans like to call him, Envy. If you have it, he wants someone else to want it, and take you down to get it. Not a particularly jealous guy himself, which is probably what makes him so interested in humans’ ability to desire literally anything that isn't theirs. Really good at getting in people’s heads and blowing shit out of proportion. Little shit's the reason straight people can't handle commitment - he feeds off insecurity.”

He spins on his heel, holding up a finger again for dramatic flair. “And last but certainly not least: Renjun, otherwise known as Sloth. Doesn't have to do much since humans are naturally lazy as shit, but he definitely does his fair share anyway. ‘Work smarter not harder’ is his motto, which is why he invented carbs and lets them do the dirty work for him. You ever see somebody carb-loaded do anything productive? I think the fuck not.”

That's six; Yukhei’s brow furrows. “So you're…”

Donghyuck stops his pacing to face Yukhei. “I'm Wrath,” he says with a smile that's all teeth, sharp around the edges. “Nice to meet you. Don’t piss me off.”

“Nice to meet you too,” Yukhei says, because what else is he gonna say to Wrath himself? Plus, it's only polite.

“Okay, enough,” Kun cuts in before turning to Yukhei. “You'll spend the day with Donghyuck, meeting the other demons and watching them work, then you'll report back to me tomorrow to let me know what you think.” He stands up from his desk, a signal that he wants them to get the fuck out. “Don't worry too much about the pairs yet, we’ll do that later,” he adds with a dismissive wave of his hand.

“Yes, sir,” Yukhei says as he steps out of the room.

“Bye, Kun!” Donghyuck sing-songs as he follows Yukhei through the doorway. “A pleasure as always, let's not wait so long to see each other again.” He blows Kun a kiss, and Yukhei thinks if angels could have strokes Kun would probably be having one right about now.

Yukhei's also considering it, seeing as Donghyuck turns to him and asks, “Alright, which one of my friends do you wanna meet first?”

And, to be honest, Yukhei hadn't been paying _that_ much attention while Donghyuck rambled, so he says the only name that comes to mind. “Uh. Jeno?”

Donghyuck's eyebrows shoot up under his fluffy bangs. “No shit?” He whistles, long and low. “I didn't know angels get horny.”

Yukhei chokes on absolutely nothing besides his dwindling sense of pride. “What the hell?”

Donghyuck snickers. “Ooh, you said ‘hell’ too. You're not very good at this whole angel thing, are you?” He grabs Yukhei’s forearm and starts dragging him to fuck knows where.

“Where are we going?”

Donghyuck shoots him a look. “We’re going to see Lust. Isn't that what you wanted?” Yukhei is inclined to argue, because he definitely didn't remember that Jeno is Lust’s real name when he suggested visiting him first, but the point is kind of moot since they'd have to see him sooner or later anyway. Might as well get it out of the way, even if Yukhei really wishes he would've had more time to mentally prepare, because seeing Lust in the flesh is bound to be overwhelming in a lot of ways. “You ready?” Donghyuck stops, halting Yukhei mid-step.

“For what?” Yukhei can't keep up with this guy, it's exhausting. A little enchanting, sure, but still exhausting.

“For materialization, dumbass,” Donghyuck says. Yukhei doesn't know what he'd been expecting, really.

“Uh, actually, I -” Yukhei’s halfhearted protest is cut off by a weird tingling sensation in his arm where Donghyuck’s hand is still wrapped around his wrist, but before he can process it his whole body goes numb and then they're in a dark room that looks like it belongs to a human. Yukhei feels like he might throw up.

Donghyuck swats him with a hand. “You better not hurl, I'm not dealing with that.”

“Why -”

“You don't do this much, do you?” Donghyuck cuts him off.

Yukhei shakes his head. “I haven't been to Earth in like 10,000 years.” It's not like he needs to perform miracles in person, so why would he ever want to come down here? Earth sucks and people are a hassle.

Donghyuck laughs lightly. “I forgot you angels aren't as hands-on as we are.” He jerks his head toward the opposite side of the room, and when Yukhei follows his gaze he notices there's a person asleep in the bed pushed up against the wall. “Now shut up and watch.”

Yukhei does as he's told, crouching in a corner next to Donghyuck, even though it's pitch black and the human wouldn't see them unless they revealed themselves anyway. Yukhei does almost knock a plant over with his wing at one point though, and Donghyuck looks like he's gonna clock him.

Eventually, a figure slips in through the window and walks over to the bed, standing over the human for what would feel like an eternity if Yukhei didn't know what eternity _actually_ feels like. It's eerily quiet, nobody moving, the only sound the steady breathing of the person lying unaware of their present company. Which is probably a good thing, all things considered. If they wake up, Yukhei might cry from embarrassment at being caught.

They don't get caught, though. The figure backs away abruptly, moving to slither back into the night until Donghyuck hisses out, “Jen!” and stops them in their tracks. Oh. That must be Jeno then.

Jeno cocks his head, turning toward them, and he looks strangely ethereal backlit by the moon. His hair is silver, Yukhei can see that much, and his skin is glowing with a kind of shimmer that reminds Yukhei of crystal clear water in sunshine. It's...surprisingly angelic.

So is his face, when he gets close enough for Yukhei to see it properly. He's got the fondest smile Yukhei’s ever seen - from angel or demon or human - and his eyes are crinkled into tiny moons that are instantly comforting in their softness. He's wearing all white, too, a loose shirt with a neckline that scoops past his sternum and pants that are definitely tighter than necessary but he makes it work. The only thing that hints he's a demon is the giant fucking inverted cross tattooed across his entire chest.

Yukhei’s brain is too busy short circuiting for him to say anything when Jeno kneels down next to them. “Hey, Hyuckie. Who's this?” _Hyuckie. That's so cute._

“This is Xuxi,” Donghyuck supplies, and it's just now that Yukhei realizes why Kun didn't want him to reveal his true name. The more demons that know it, the easier it is for them to use it against him.

“Call me Yukhei,” he says, sticking a hand out. Do demons shake hands? He doesn't know any demons besides Donghyuck, and Donghyuck definitely is not the handshake type.

Jeno, however, takes Yukhei’s hand and introduces himself agreeably. “What are you doing here?”

Donghyuck smiles, and something instantly flashes in Jeno’s eyes like he knows this is gonna be good. “Let's find somewhere to talk.”

Jeno nods and makes his way back to the window, motioning for them to follow. They comply, and this time Yukhei really does knock the damn plant over, so they scamper out as fast as possible when the human in bed stirs.

Once they're outside, Jeno leads them over to a tree and climbs up to sit on a branch. Yukhei beats his wings to join him, and drags Donghyuck up with him in the process. “So, what's up?” Jeno asks, and he looks even prettier out here, glistening even more in the direct moonlight. It's so annoying. And distracting.

Donghyuck’s voice immediately goes back to its usual obnoxious decibel. “Xuxi’s gonna pair you with an angel!”

Jeno’s face lights up like that's the best thing he's ever heard. “Seriously? For that buddy thing?”

Yukhei groans. “Did everyone know about it but me?”

“Probably, yeah,” Donghyuck says unhelpfully. “Go on, do your thing.” He holds his arm out at Jeno like he wants Yukhei to - well, Yukhei doesn't know what he wants him to do.

“Wait, shit, hold on.” Yukhei runs a hand through his hair. “I have so many questions.”

Jeno smiles encouragingly. Is he ever not smiling? “Shoot.”

Yukhei sighs. “First of all, what did I just watch?”

Jeno shrugs. “I was giving them a wet dream.”

Yukhei chokes again, and he thinks he might be dying, somehow, even though that can't happen. “You did what?” he asks as calmly as possible considering he still kind of feels like something is blocking his airway.

Jeno raises an eyebrow. “I gave them a wet dream. Do angels not have those?” He looks at Donghyuck, who shakes his head. “Y’know, it's when humans dream about -”

Yukhei rushes to cut him off with an, “I know what it is, oh my god,” only to be teased by Donghyuck for using His name in vain. “Stop it, He’s not gonna smite me,” Yukhei says as Donghyuck pushes Jeno away from Yukhei while he yells about being in the “strike zone.” “He doesn't do that anymore.”

“Oh doesn't he?” Donghyuck says, just to be contrary.

“No, and that's not what - y’know what, never mind.” Yukhei’s already tired, and he wonders vaguely if this is how Kun feels on a constant basis. “Jeno, can you just tell me about what you do?”

Jeno nods. “Well, I do a lot, but puberty is a big one.”

Yukhei’s eyes snap up to meet Jeno’s. “That's you?”

Jeno chuckles, shaking his head. “Not all of it, just the raging hormones. And like, men having their midlife crisis are also fun.”

Yukhei squints at him. “But you look so…”

“Beautiful?” Donghyuck says.

“Shut up, Hyuckie.” Jeno bumps their shoulders together. “I look so what, Yukhei?” There's a twinkle in his eye; he knows what he's doing.

Joke’s on him, because Yukhei has no shame. “You just - I thought you were an angel at first.”

Donghyuck fake gags. “That was a bad line, even for you.”

Yukhei ignores him. “Don't take this the wrong way, you just look really pure.”

Jeno tilts his head, considering. “Just ‘cause I take people’s purity doesn't mean I can't have mine. I don't like any of this sexy shit, really, I’m just good at making humans like it.” He shrugs. Donghyuck nods in support.

Yukhei just absorbs that for a second. “So, wait. You're Lust, and you -”

“Yeah, he's the poster child for sex and he isn't even horny, that's the gist of it.” Donghyuck waves a hand at Yukhei, signaling for him to move on. “Need anything else?”

Yukhei’s still processing, so he blurts, “What do you like then?”

Jeno flashes him a tiny smile. “Cats, watermelon, soap that smells like mint - oh, and music. The music in hell is shit, to be honest, so I usually stay up here as long as I can to hear what people listen to.”

“You really care about these people?” Yukhei asks.

Jeno laughs. “Well, yeah. They're interesting. Cats can see us, that's why I love them, so I'll just hang out and pet their cats and listen to the music they play while they do their homework or watch them debate over what shade of yellow to paint their bedroom or stress about which outfit to wear for a first date. We don't get to do stuff like that.”

“I guess not,” Yukhei concedes. Still, he's never considered actually sticking around to observe humans - he'd always thought their worlds were separate for a reason, too different to be blended.

Then Jeno says, “But, for the most part, I just tempt them into having sex. I invented Tinder, did you know that?” and the moment’s over.

“Atta boy!” Donghyuck nearly shouts as he ruffles Jeno’s hair. “Alright, Xuxi, we gotta go! There's plenty more where this came from, and we’re on a tight schedule.” He hops off the branch and shoots Jeno a smile (probably the only genuine one Yukhei’s seen from him yet) and waves at Yukhei to follow.

“Thanks, Jeno,” Yukhei says with a nod as he glides down to catch up with Donghyuck. Jeno waves goodbye before jumping down and wandering off to tempt some other poor soul.

“So,” Donghyuck says once Yukhei falls into step beside him. “Who's next?”

Yukhei says the first name he thinks of. “Mark.”

Donghyuck grins, grabs Yukhei’s hand, and then that tingly feeling is back. Yukhei’s a little more prepared for it this time, so when he blinks and they're at a carnival in broad daylight it isn't nearly as jarring as the first trip.

Donghyuck pulls him over to a makeshift stage, where five humans are sitting at a long table, pies quite literally piled in front of them. Yukhei’s about to ask what the fuck all that food is for, but then a whistle blows out of seemingly nowhere and the people on stage start shoving the pies into their mouths with their bare hands. It's kind of impressive how fast they're going, even if it’s a little disgusting and makes Yukhei’s stomach hurt just watching it.

It really doesn't take long for one of them to finish, which Yukhei shouldn't be surprised at, all things considered. The whistle blows again, the rest of them stop and groan (though Yukhei isn't sure if it's because they lost or if they just feel sick) and the winner is given a tacky giant trophy. They take pictures, interview for TV - it's a whole production. Yukhei just wants to know what the point of all this is.

Then he hears Donghyuck shout, “Mark!” and wave his hand wildly in the air, and it all starts to make a little more sense.

“Gluttony?” Yukhei asks just in case he's wrong.

“That's me,” Mark says as he stops in front of Yukhei. “Who are you?"

“This is Xuxi, the angel that's gonna find your partner!” Donghyuck says, ever so enthusiastic.

“Call me Yukhei,” Yukhei says again, and again he sticks a hand out.

Mark takes it, shaking it firmly before tilting his head. “So what do you think?”

Yukhei blinks at him. “About what?”

Mark laughs. “About my work.” He hooks a thumb over his shoulder at the now empty stage.

“Well, I think it's gross,” Yukhei says truthfully.

“Me too, dude, me too,” Mark says, giggling again as Donghyuck rolls his eyes.

And like, Yukhei’s a polite guy, he really doesn't mean to stare. But he can't help it if Mark’s sharp suit and slicked back hair is a stark contrast to the carnival fanfare that surrounds him. Also, his cheekbones. Very noteworthy. He wears a goofy smile that makes it look like he's everybody’s friend, and if Yukhei didn't know any better he'd think Mark was just a normal dude with a quirky habit of overdressing.

Wait. “Hey, uh. Mark?”

Mark smiles at him. “What's up?”

Yukhei looks at Donghyuck for reassurance, but Donghyuck has no clue what he's about to say so he just raises an eyebrow. Yukhei swallows and tells himself it can't hurt to ask. “Where's your tattoo?” The soft curves of Mark’s eyebrows twitch at that, like he’s surprised but doesn't want to show it. “Isn't that a...demon thing? Or...” He trails off, not wanting to dig this particular hole any deeper.

“You wanna see it?” Mark asks casually.

Yukhei is really starting to wonder if this is a good idea, but he nods. “If that's okay.”

Mark smirks at him, which activates Yukhei’s fight or flight response because he thinks maybe this was a mistake after all. Then Mark opens his mouth and sticks out his tongue, and there it is written just above the fork where his tongue splits in two. _In nomine satanas._ In the name of Satan. Good. Great. Mark’s definitely a demon, confirmed.

“Wow, okay,” is Yukhei’s brilliant response to this new information.

Donghyuck, for his part, is dying. “They always have the same reaction, holy shit, Mark.” He wipes away imaginary tears.

Yukhei turns to narrow his eyes at Donghyuck. “Well what did _you_ do the first time you saw it?” he asks defensively.

Donghyuck’s gaze smolders and Yukhei withers almost immediately, even before Donghyuck says, “I asked him to make out.”

“What?” Yukhei nearly yells.

“To be fair, I said yes,” Mark so helpfully supplies. “We dated for like, 20,000 years.”

Yukhei is struggling to process all of this. “You - Demons date each other?”

Donghyuck and Mark share a look. “Duh. Do angels not date?” Donghyuck asks.

“Wait, no, don't they have to be celibate or whatever?” Mark counters.

“No, that's a myth,” Yukhei tells them as he covers his face with his hand. Angels can't blush, but he definitely feels the emotion anyway. “But, uh, no offense,” he says as he looks through his fingers, “it seems like demons dating is a bad idea.”

Donghyuck and Mark both laugh at that. “It is,” Mark offers just as Donghyuck says, “No shit.”

“You know the term ‘glutton for punishment’?” Donghyuck asks, and Yukhei nods. “Yeah, that was me and Mark. Literally. We started that.”

Yukhei’s eyes grow wide as something clicks into place. “So your sins feed off of each other?”

Mark nods. “More or less. Sins are all pretty intertwined anyway, but you get two of us together and shit gets messy real fast.”

“Yeah, but me and Jeno were worse, I think.”

Yukhei stares at Donghyuck. “You dated Jeno?”

Donghyuck nods casually. “Well yeah, where do you think BDSM came from?”

Yukhei thinks he might be getting a headache. He holds a hand out to stop Donghyuck. “Okay, enough, I’m good.” He sighs. “Mark, can I just ask you one more question?”

Mark nods again, a stray piece of his bangs flopping into his eyes. “Go for it.”

“What do you like about your job?”

Mark moves a hand up to his chin like he's really considering the answer and stills for several heartbeats. (Or, well, that's what Yukhei assumes - he doesn't have a heart, so he wouldn't know.) “Most of my job is pretty boring, actually, since it's a lot of tempting people into eating shitty junk food that'll give them a heart attack in thirty years, so not much instant gratification. But that means that while I’m here I can watch them go about their lives, and people aren't that bad sometimes, really.”

Yukhei hums. “So you like being here with them?”

Mark shrugs. “I don't really care much for overindulgence, I'm a simple guy. I like playing the guitar, and writing, and snow. I can appreciate that stuff way more up here than I ever could in Hell. Especially snow. Canada’s my favourite place, even though Americans are definitely the easiest to tempt with over-processed sugar.”

Yukhei tilts his head. “Huh.”

Donghyuck looks up at him. “What?”

Yukhei looks at him, then Mark, then back to Donghyuck. “You demons are a lot more sentimental than I thought you'd be.”

Mark chuckles and Donghyuck scoffs. “There's a lot you don't know about us, big guy.” He takes Yukhei’s hand again, which isn't panic inducing at all. “Let's go see Chenle!”

Mark raises his eyebrows for real this time. “Have fun, Yukhei. It was nice to meet you.” He waves, spinning on his heel to wander off toward the ferris wheel. He's gone by the time Donghyuck grabs Yukhei’s hand.

Yukhei doesn't get even the slightest warning before Donghyuck materializes them somewhere new, and while he's slowly getting used to the process, the pins and needles in his body are kind of annoying. He shakes out his long limbs, then goes to do the same for his wings and realizes they're gone. Like, not just numb, they're _gone._

“What the fuck did you do?” he frantically asks Donghyuck, who's completely ignoring him in favour of craning his neck to see the far end of the spacious room around an unnecessarily large potted plant. Wait. The tree isn't potted, it's planted next to a koi pond. But they're inside. Who puts a koi pond inside a building?

“Found him,” Donghyuck says under his breath before turning to Yukhei. “Look alive, babe, everyone can see you this time.” He grabs Yukhei’s hand, pulling him across the room.

“They can - Wait, where are we?” Yukhei blindly follows Donghyuck’s lead, because he doesn't know what else to do, and he's starting to learn that it's best to listen when Donghyuck tells him to do something.

“A mall,” Donghyuck says, matter of fact, though that answer means nothing to Yukhei. “Now could you _please_ relax? This is supposed to look natural.” He shakes Yukhei’s hand for emphasis before intertwining their fingers.

Yukhei finally looks down at Donghyuck to protest some more, but it's then he realizes Donghyuck’s tattoo has vanished. “Uh, Donghyuck, your -”

Yukhei's interrupted by an over-enthusiastic shout of “Haechan!” from a boy sitting on a bench in front of them. He stands, running to throw his arms around Donghyuck, who hugs him back with his free arm. “Who's this?” he asks, darting his eyes to Yukhei and then back to meet Donghyuck’s gaze.

“This is Xuxi, the angel I told you about,” Donghyuck says.

Yukhei doesn't bother to correct the name, partially because Donghyuck won't ever let it go and he's resigned himself to that fate, and partially because he's too busy being crushed in a suffocating hug. “Uh, nice to meet you too,” he wheezes.

The boy releases his death grip, taking a step back and straightening his jacket. “I'm Chenle! Please pair me with somebody nice.”

“They're angels, idiot. They're all nice.” Donghyuck rolls his eyes fondly. “And more importantly, who are you wearing today?”

Chenle’s eyes sparkle playfully, and he motions for the other two to sit down. Yukhei’s slightly lost, as he tends to be whenever Donghyuck and his friends are involved, but he obeys when Donghyuck tugs him down onto the bench beside him. Chenle backs up a little, giving them a spin.

“Outfit is Hermès.” He sticks a foot out, wiggling it. “Shoes are Louis Vuitton.” He whips a pair of sunglasses out of nowhere and slides them onto his nose. “Glasses are Cartier, and as usual, the watch is Rolex. Obviously.” He holds his hand out to show it off.

The first thing Yukhei notices, besides the watch, are the pitch black claws that stick out over Chenle’s fingertips, colour fading up his fingers like he's stuck them in ash. The second thing Yukhei notices, when Donghyuck flips Chenle’s hand over to inspect the watch band, is the symbol tattooed there. It's almost a pentagram, but there's something like an infinity sign entangled in the middle.

“Is that a sigil?” Yukhei asks, interrupting Chenle’s babble to Donghyuck about how modest his attire is.

Chenle lifts both hands now, palms out, and Yukhei can see the left one is covered in the other half of a matching set. “Yeah. They're for Mammon,” he says simply, like he assumes Yukhei will know what that means.

He assumes correctly. “Oh. You're Greed?”

Chenle laughs, loud and carefree. “Dude, yeah. Could you not tell by the way I look?” He cocks an eyebrow behind the sunglasses he's still wearing indoors like some kind of douche. “And I mean, the grabby hands.” He wiggles his claws at Yukhei in a demonstration that is very much not needed, but his ardor is kind of refreshing, so it's fine.

Yukhei just kind of looks at him for a minute. “I'm sorry, but can you explain to me what exactly you're doing here? And where _here_ is?” Chenle’s cute, sure, but Yukhei’s still very confused.

Chenle laughs again, and Donghyuck has a tiny smile on his face that he's clearly trying to hide. “We’re at the mall!” That still doesn't make any more sense than it did when Donghyuck said it, so Yukhei tells him as much. “It's where humans go to shop sometimes, ‘cause it's a bunch of stores in one place so it's easier.”

“And you...hang out here?” Yukhei prompts.

Chenle nods. “Yep. Everything they sell here is ridiculously expensive, but it's _so_ easy to convince people they need useless stuff if it's pretty.”

Fair enough. “So is that what you do all day?”

Chenle shakes his head, green hair fluttering around his eyes. “I do this a lot, but mostly I convince people to get credit cards. This is just more fun than that.”

Okay, Yukhei has several questions. First, “What's a credit card?”

Donghyuck sighs, exasperated. “It's a card that lets you spend money you don't have, so you end up paying more in the long run,” he explains. “You really need to visit Earth more often, keep up.”

Yukhei ignores that last comment and addresses Chenle again. “What makes you think this is more fun?”

And Yukhei is catching on to the theme here - he isn't as dense as he seems. So it's no wonder when Chenle says, “I like being with the humans. When I'm here, I can reveal myself and interact with them and it's way more exciting. Plus I don't like getting into people's heads, even though it's my job and I'm good at it, so it makes me feel a little better if I just flaunt my designer clothes and pressure them into buying shit just like other humans do. Like, it's still manipulation, but it's just human levels of manipulation.”

And angels don't really operate the same way demons do, but Yukhei can appreciate the sentiment, on some level. “How come Donghyuck and I look human, but you still have your...hands?”

Chenle laughs again (he does that a lot). “I just don't conceal them. The tattoos are whatever, humans have those all the time. And as for my claws...” He pauses, lifting a knuckle to his chin in thought. “I guess the best way to put it is, nobody questions it ‘cause rich people can do whatever the fuck they want and get away with it - it's kind of fascinating, actually. Plus having a weird manicure isn't gonna stop me from spending money, so why would they care?”

“Manicure?” Yukhei repeats, but Donghyuck just shakes his head to shush him, and he's distracted by another thought. “Wait, how do you have human money?”

Chenle narrows his eyes at Yukhei. “Don't think about it too hard,” he says, which sounds horribly ominous and mildly concerning, but as usual Donghyuck takes control of the situation and derails it completely.

“Kay, let's go, Xuxi!” he says, tugging on Yukhei's sleeve. “Who do you wanna see next?”

Chenle’s face lights up. “Jisung!”

“Why?” Donghyuck cuts him a look.

Chenle just gives him a big smile. “Because he's my best friend, and Xuxi will love him too.”

Yukhei is sort of inclined to argue that point on principle, but really so far Donghyuck’s friends have been pretty pleasant so he keeps his mouth shut. “I guess you are kind of a matching set,” Donghyuck concedes with a sigh.

“Yep,” Chenle agrees, popping the “p” as he says it. “I gotta go, a lady two stores over is thinking of putting something back after reading the price tag.” He takes the sunglasses off, finally, and turns to leave. “Bye Xuxi, come see me again sometime!” He waves energetically and Yukhei waves back much more calmly. Then Chenle walks around a corner and he's gone.

Donghyuck squeezes Yukhei’s hand lightly (have they really been holding hands all this time?) and Yukhei braces himself for the inevitable. “C’mon, big guy, let's go see Envy.”

Yukhei barely has time to blink before they're sitting on an uncomfortable bench attached to an ugly table that's identical to all the others in a large room. The only difference is, all the other tables are full. The one they're at is only occupied by two other figures - one of whom is tapping their foot rhythmically against the tile floor.

“Sungie!” Donghyuck says, and the tapping stops.

The boy turns to face them, and while the little red devil horns poking through his dark hair are pretty noteworthy, the most striking thing about him is his eyes (or rather, his eye). The right one is completely normal, shiny brown iris and a pupil that’s dilated in concentration. The other is completely white except for the center, which is marked with a black circle surrounded by arrows pointing outward in every direction. Yukhei’s definitely seen that symbol before. Is it called a chaos star?

The boy’s face immediately softens when he sees Donghyuck. “Hi, Donghyuck,” he says calmly. “Who's the angel?”

“This is Xuxi.” Donghyuck elbows Yukhei and he nods at the other boy.

“You're Jisung?” he clarifies.

Jisung shrugs. “Sure, but most people call me Envy. I guess you already knew that, though.”

“Right,” is all Yukhei has to say to that. “So what are you doing?”

Yukhei takes in the room, which is loud and chaotic and generally unpleasant, and the harsh lighting washes everyone out so they look sickly. (Well, all the humans, anyway. Yukhei and his demon companions aren't affected by it, since they aren't inhabiting a physical form at the moment.) There's a line of people off to the side, up against a wall, but Yukhei can't see what's happening from his spot in the corner.

“We're in a lunchroom,” Jisung says, which clears nothing up.

So naturally, Yukhei asks, “What's that?”

Jisung glances at Donghyuck and cocks an eyebrow before turning back to Yukhei. “Do you know what high school is?”

“Uh. No?” They definitely don't have that in Heaven.

“It's where kids go to learn stuff they won't ever use in life, but for some reason it defines their immediate future,” Jisung calmly explains.

Donghyuck snorts. “It's hell on earth, is what it is.”

“That too,” Jisung admits. “I make sure of that.” Now he’s got a wicked grin on his face that Yukhei really doesn't like the look of.

Yukhei starts to say something, but Donghyuck puts a hand against his chest like he's physically holding him back. “Just watch.”

Yukhei nods, and Jisung moves to face the other figure at the table - apparently, a human in high school. He doesn't move, but the human is clearly going through some kind of mental anguish that Yukhei couldn’t possibly guess at. It only takes a minute before the human stands abruptly and storms off, leaving a single carton of milk in their wake.

“What'd you do this time?” Donghyuck asks excitedly. Yukhei suppresses a groan.

Jisung just looks smug. “Nothing _that_ big. He's gonna start a nasty rumour about the captain of the football team.”

Donghyuck claps his hands like he's invested in this, which he can't possibly be because they just got here. Then again, this is Donghyuck, after all. “Why is he gonna do that?” Yukhei asks, because for once he's the sensible one.

“The captain’s dating a cheerleader who rejected him. He thinks the guy stole her from him, so he's pissed,” Jisung says like it should be obvious.

“That's the stupidest thing ever,” Yukhei blurts before he can stop himself. He probably shouldn't go around insulting a demon’s work. Kun would kill him if he found out.

But Jisung just laughs. “Yeah, it is, but humans aren't particularly self-aware. He never had a chance with her, anyway, but that's not my problem.”

“You're brilliant, Sungie. The diabolical sin. A true prodigy.” Donghyuck waxes poetic, draping himself across Yukhei’s chest with a delicate hand pressed against his forehead like a swooning damsel.

Jisung rolls his eyes. “Whatever, you're literally -”

“Enough about me!” Donghyuck cuts him off as he bolts upright. “Tell Xuxi what you like about your job,” he prompts, because evidently Yukhei is predictable.

Jisung gives him a funny look, which is understandable because Yukhei doesn't know what Donghyuck’s deal is either, but he drops it. “I don't like it that much, really. I just convince humans to sabotage each other, but they don't even need me for that. They think they deserve the shit someone else has even without me around.”

Once again, Yukhei isn't surprised. So once again, he asks what he really wants to know. “Well what do you like, Jisung?”

He thinks for a moment, staring off into space. “I like soccer. And dancing, and melon. My favourite part about my job is that I get to see the whole world, because Hell is pretty much the same anywhere you go, it's all just on fire all the time. It's boring. But every place on Earth is so different, and the people all have a different way of living. I also really like hats, which is sad because I can't wear them. My horns get in the way.” He shrugs.

“Well for the record, you'd be so cute in a hat,” Donghyuck interjects. Yukhei can't exactly argue there.

There's a sudden commotion near the doors, a group of humans making a lot of noise and flailing quite a bit. Yukhei thinks he hears some of them chanting for a fight. “Uh. Should we do something about that?” He's never been this close to a human conflict - he usually deals with more personal stuff. Like curing a little kid’s cancer, or whatever.

“Oh, yeah, that's me,” Jisung says as he stands up and stretches. “Gotta go make sure my boy did his job.”

“What was the rumour?” Donghyuck asks.

Jisung gives him a wicked smile. “Not telling.” He starts to walk off before throwing a, “Maybe I would if you were on the clock. You could make this fight a lot more interesting,” over his shoulder.

Donghyuck immediately gives Yukhei puppy eyes, and Yukhei is almost weak enough to cave. Almost. “ _No._ We’re leaving, c’mon.”

Donghyuck pouts, and Yukhei’s chest clenches. “You know you can't leave without me, right? You don't even know where you're going.”

“Yes, I know. Which is why I’m telling you we're leaving,” Yukhei says, grabbing Donghyuck’s hand.

Donghyuck rolls his eyes but squeezes Yukhei’s hand out of reflex. “Fine,” he huffs before waving goodbye to Jisung with his free hand.

Jisung returns the gesture from his perch on a table near the fight, and Yukhei gives him a smile and a wave, too. Then Donghyuck’s gripping his hand even tighter, and Yukhei's arm goes numb. He doesn't know who they're going to visit next, but he finds that he's okay with that. So far the demons have been pretty nice, really, and for some reason he can't explain, he trusts Donghyuck.

He will admit he’s not really expecting to materialize in a dark room lit only by the screen of a smartphone, though. The tiny light source barely illuminates the face of the figure holding it, but even in the dim light Yukhei can see a huge leviathan cross tattooed across their neck, infinity sign so large it almost reaches their collarbones and the double cross wrapping around to the sides of their neck. They look up when they hear the stirring of Yukhei’s wings.

The figure looks up, gaze passing right over Yukhei before landing on Donghyuck, and they instantly straighten up from where they’re slouched in a bean bag chair. “Well, if it isn’t the Full Sun himself.”

Yukhei has no idea what that means, but Donghyuck says “Hey, Junnie!” so he guesses they’re addressing Donghyuck. “I’m gonna turn the light on,” Donghyuck adds as he flips the switch. The fact he finds it without even looking tells Yukhei he does this a lot.

“Ow, why?” the guy groans, rubbing his eyes. “And who the fuck is that?” He points vaguely in Yukhei’s direction, eyes still adjusting.

“It’s Xuxi, you ass. Be nice,” Donghyuck says petulantly.

“Oh. The angel?” Donghyuck nods, and the guy squints but he seems to get the message. “Hey angel, I’m Renjun.” He sticks a hand out, which Yukhei shakes, obviously. “Or you can call me Sloth, up to you.”

“Hi Renjun,” Yukhei says mildly. He’d hate to be addressed as a sin - though he suspects it’s not as much of an issue for demons.

“So, what are you doing here?” Renjun asks no one in particular.

As usual, Donghyuck takes the lead. “Xuxi’s here to meet you and watch you work so he can pair you with an angel who can tolerate you.”

Yukhei chokes. “That’s not exactly -”

Donghyuck swats his arm to shut him up and Renjun laughs. “Good luck with that,” Renjun says good naturedly.

Yukhei tries to steer the conversation in a more productive direction by shooting Renjun’s question back at him. “What are _you_ doing here, anyway?”

Renjun waves him over, and when Yukhei crouches beside him Renjun tugs him down onto the bean bag with him. Without the width of the room to separate them, Yukhei finally gets a closer look at him - and he’s like, really pretty. And cute. He’s got soft silver hair that’s all messy from lounging around all day, and the hoodie he’s wearing makes him look even tinier than he is. He even has a snaggletooth fang that sticks out over his lip, and Yukhei wants to cry it’s so endearing. The neck tattoo would make him look scary if he wasn’t completely adorable in every other way. He may be a demon, but Yukhei gets the feeling he wouldn’t hurt a fly.

Then Renjun holds up his phone, and Yukhei snaps out of his observation to stare at it from where he’s half sitting on the demon. He has no clue what anything on the screen means. Renjun must sense that, because he says simply, “I’m improving Youtube’s suggestion algorithm,” which doesn’t make Yukhei understand it, but he appreciates the effort.

Donghyuck plops down onto the pile and tells Renjun, “You’re gonna have to translate that for him. Old ass hasn’t been to Earth in thousands of years.”

Renjun snickers, but complies. “So,” he says as he turns to Yukhei, “basically, all social media -”

“No, dumb it down more,” Donghyuck interrupts at the same time Yukhei mutters, “Social media?”

Renjun sighs like this is the hardest thing he’s ever had to do. “Social media is like, for humans to share pictures and shit about their lives that everyone says they don’t care about but they spend _hours_ on it every day.” He pauses, waiting for Yukhei’s nod of understanding. “So, my job is to make sure they spend even more time on it. They can’t be productive if they’re watching videos of cats falling off of stuff all day.”

“That one even works on Jeno,” Donghyuck says, Renjun laughing with him.

“Jeno has Youtube?” Yukhei asks, because mingling with humans (and human culture) is still a novel idea to him, even if he’s slowly getting used to it.

Renjun nods. “I send him links all the time when he’s down here. Idiot doesn’t even do his job half the time because he’s too busy spamming the group chat with crying emojis.”

Yukhei must look as baffled as he feels, because Donghyuck cuts in with a, “Let’s not overwhelm him with human technology.”

Yukhei ignores his confusion to address the more pressing matter at hand. “Wait, doesn’t Satan get pissed if he doesn’t do his job?” He likes Jeno; he wouldn’t want him to get into trouble.

Donghyuck and Renjun just share a look before bursting out laughing again. “You think the Lawless One himself cares if we do our jobs? If anything, he encourages degeneracy.”

Well, Renjun makes a good point, but that’s news to Yukhei - his Boss has always been very strict on miracle quotas and that kind of thing. “What?” is all he has to say while he processes this new revelation.

“We’ve _been_ telling you,” Donghyuck says with an eye roll, “the humans don’t actually need our help to be pieces of shit. We just encourage them.”

Yukhei’s brow furrows. “So you just...neglect your jobs?”

Renjun shakes his head. “Not neglect, exactly. More like we watch them make bad decisions on their own. And if they’re being a little too good, we give them a push in the wrong direction.” He winks, and Yukhei decides not to unpack how he feels about that.

“Damn, you’re a lot more laid back than I thought,” he says instead. “Like, Satan’s pure evil. I thought he’d be a lot more...tyrannical.”

“Wow, he knows big words!” Donghyuck elbows Renjun, who giggles. Yukhei is noticing Donghyuck turns into a lot more of a little shit when Renjun’s around. “But hey, the Legend’s not a dictator, for fuck’s sake. Need I remind you, we all chose to follow him.”

“And no offense,” Renjun offers, “but he’s way more fun than your Boss ever was.”

“True,” Donghyuck agrees, pointing a finger at Yukhei. “Your Boss has a major stick up his ass.”

Yukhei laughs. “Are you trying to recruit me? Because you’re like, a billion years too late for that.”

Donghyuck bats his eyelashes, feigning innocence and doing a very poor job of it. “We would never. But if you wanted to join, I know a guy who can help with that.” Now he winks, and Yukhei has had just about enough of these two and the weird shit they’re making him feel.

So he tactfully changes the subject with a subtle, “Anyway, Renjun, what do you like about your job?”

Renjun blinks at him. “Besides having a cooler boss than you?”

Yukhei sighs. He’s given up. “Yeah, sure, besides that.”

Renjun doesn’t even pause to think before answering. “I love art. I can’t really do it in Hell, because that fucking infernal fire burns all my paper the second I bring it down there, but here I can do anything I want. There’s painting, and charcoal, and even digital art if I’m too lazy to go buy more canvas. Oh, and Moomin. I can’t watch Moomin back home, which is a real shame because it’s so cute. I’ve also been into ballet recently - it’s amazing what humans will do to their bodies for something they love.”

“Do you ever try to keep them from ballet?” Yukhei asks, because that’s an interesting thing for Sloth to be involved in.

“Well, yeah, of course. But the passionate ones don’t listen to me. They’re my favourite.” Renjun gives him a tiny smile, and Yukhei hums.

“Weird. I thought you wouldn’t like it if they ignored you.”

Donghyuck huffs. “You still don’t get it, do you?” Yukhei cocks an eyebrow at him. “The humans do all the work, we just amplify their own shitty desires to test them. It’s not like we want them to fail.”

Yukhei doesn’t say anything, and Renjun and Donghyuck share another look Yukhei can’t decipher. “Has he met Jaemin yet?” Renjun asks.

Donghyuck shakes his head. “Nah, not yet. He’s next.”

Renjun smirks. “Saving the worst for last?”

Donghyuck shoots him a devilish smile back. “Duh.”

“You should just take him now then,” Renjun says with a pointed look at Yukhei. “Let Jaemin have some fun. Maybe then he’ll get it.”

Donghyuck nods. “Alright, big guy, up and at ‘em!” He yanks on Yukhei’s arm, dragging him up from where he’s still tangled with Renjun on the bean bag. “You’re absolutely gonna love Jaemin, babe.”

And Yukhei’s observant enough to notice that the pet name only comes out when Donghyuck’s being especially antagonistic, so he instantly fears the worst. (Plus, the mischievous glint in his eye would be slightly concerning on its own.) But it’s not like he can argue, since it’s his job and all, so he just nods and holds Donghyuck’s hand while he waits for the pins and needles to start.

“Bye, Junnie!” Donghyuck gives him a hug with his free arm, and Yukhei waves.

“Bye,” Renjun says, waving as he steps back. “Good luck, Xuxi. It was nice to meet you.” They’re already fading before Yukhei can ask what exactly he’ll need the luck for. Not that Renjun would tell him, anyway.

The next thing Yukhei knows, they’re in a coffee shop and his wings are gone again, along with Donghyuck’s tattoo. Which means the humans can see them. Which means Jaemin likes fucking with them in the flesh. Brilliant.

And speak of the devil (no pun intended), Donghyuck is waving some guy with pink hair over and yelling, “Nana!” like that isn’t obnoxious to do across a crowd of people indoors.

Jaemin’s head turns, and his face lights up when he sees Donghyuck. He has a really nice smile, and Yukhei is surprised by how _normal_ he looks. His hair is perfectly styled, his eyes sparkle in the natural light seeping in through the windows, and his smile is so soft it looks like he doesn’t have a bad bone in his body. He’s in a sweater vest, for fuck’s sake. What kind of demon wears a sweater vest? It’s messing with Yukhei’s head.

The only thing that gives it away are the two sulfur crosses visible through the rips in the knees of his dark jeans - a triangle and a diamond, both with inverted crosses underneath. One on each kneecap, for the fire and brimstone of Hell.

“Hey, Duckie!” he all but yells as he envelopes Donghyuck in a hug. “What brings you here?”

They pull apart, and Jaemin notices Yukhei right as Yukhei notices Jaemin is holding a fluffy white rabbit. This guy _cannot_ be a demon. Yukhei won’t believe it.

He must say so out loud, because Donghyuck is laughing his ass off and wiping tears from his eyes. “Dude, Pride is literally the gateway sin. Some humans say he’s the worst sin, but a lot of them say he’s the _only_ sin. He’s the baddest bitch in Hell.” Donghyuck leans on Jaemin, who barely reacts. He’s still smiling. “Too bad he never comes home.”

Yukhei’s still processing all of that, but he does manage to point out, “It seems like that’s just a demon thing, though. You’re never actually in Hell.”

Donghyuck shakes his head. “No, but we do drop in every now and then. Jaemin here hasn’t been back in - what, a million years?”

Jaemin rolls his eyes. “It’s been 500 years, Duckie. Not that long.”

Donghyuck snaps his fingers. “Oh right, it just seems longer because you’re all over the news every time we come up here. We never actually see you, but we can’t get away from your face.” He pinches Jaemin’s cheek, who pushes him off, but he’s giggling.

“You’re in the news?” Yukhei repeats. “I thought demons liked to be more lowkey.”

“Where did you get that idea?” Donghyuck quips, and Yukhei shrugs.

Jaemin just goes back to smiling. “I’m not like the other sins. I can’t work my magic unless everyone’s looking at me.” He winks. Yukhei’s tired.

The barista calls out Jaemin’s name, so he walks up to the counter to grab his drink, Donghyuck and Yukhei in tow. After an extremely civil exchange with the worker who hands him his coffee (complete with a lot of blushing and stuttering on the poor barista’s part), he leads them over to a table, where he sits and sips his coffee.

Yukhei takes the seat across from him, and Donghyuck throws himself into the chair next to Jaemin before snatching the rabbit to hold in his own lap. He strokes its soft fur as Yukhei asks, “What’s with the rabbit?” because he doesn’t even know where to start, and that seems as good a place as any.

“Her name’s Cinnabun,” Jaemin offers. “Sin for short.”

When he doesn’t elaborate, Yukhei just says, “Hi, Cinnabun.”

The rabbit looks at him for half a second then goes back to nuzzling Donghyuck’s hand. “Introduce yourself,” Donghyuck tells him.

“Oh. I’m Yukhei,” he says, reaching to pat the rabbit’s head.

“Not to the rabbit, dumbass!” Donghyuck nearly shouts as Jaemin reaches over to grab Yukhei’s wrist with scary fast precision.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” he says, still holding Yukhei’s arm. “She’s cute, but she’s still a familiar. She doesn’t really like angels.”

“A familiar?” Yukhei tilts his head as Jaemin drops his hand.

“Yeah. A low level demon companion,” Jaemin says like he should know that already.

Donghyuck sees the questioning look Jaemin’s giving him, so he offers a cheery, “They don’t teach them shit up in Heaven except how to follow orders.” And Yukhei can’t argue that point, really.

“I can touch you, though?” Yukhei says uncertainly. “Why can’t I pet her?”

Jaemin snorts. “She’s a _low_ level demon. We -” he points back and forth to himself and Donghyuck, “are the seven deadly sins incarnate. We can do whatever the fuck we want, but she has to listen to her demonic instincts. Which would include eating you, and I’d rather not cause a scene like that in my favourite coffee shop.”

Yukhei eyes the rabbit warily. “Is that like, a power thing, or an intelligence thing?”

Jaemin shrugs. “Both, kinda. Me and Donghyuck are closer to being human than she is, at least as far as denial of instinct goes. We can think for ourselves, but she’s just a bunny.” He pats her head, and she flops over on Donghyuck’s lap. “Well, not _just_ a bunny, but you get the point. To her, every angel is an enemy.”

“And to you?” Yukhei asks.

“I think angels are great,” Jaemin chirps. “Do you know Jaehyun? He’s a Seraph, glows a really pretty gold, never stops singing.”

Yukhei nods. “I’ve met him, yeah. Why?”

“He’s one of my best friends,” Jaemin says and sips at his coffee like that isn’t world-shattering information.

“As riveting as all this small talk about mutual friends is,” Donghyuck cuts in, as he has a tendency to do, “can we please get on with it? I know you’re dying to figure him out, Xuxi.”

Jaemin doesn’t miss the way Donghyuck addresses him. “Xuxi?”

“It’s his true name,” Donghyuck says nonchalantly, and Jaemin’s smile is suddenly a lot more unsettling. “So yeah, let’s go, big guy. Ask him what you wanna know.” He kicks Yukhei’s shin under the table.

“Okay, okay,” Yukhei says, rubbing his leg where Donghyuck’s foot hit the bone. “I don’t know where to start, really.”

Donghyuck gasps dramatically. “This is the first time he hasn’t had a question ready,” he tells Jaemin gleefully before turning back to Yukhei. “Rapid fire, go!”

Yukhei spits out the first thing that comes to mind. “Why do you look so normal?” What a great way to start the conversation. Way to go, Yukhei.

Jaemin just laughs. “I’m a shapeshifter. This isn’t what I actually look like.”

Yukhei’s mouth nearly drops to the floor. Every demon has some control over their appearance when they materialize, but not usually to such an extreme degree. “Then what do you actually look like?”

Jaemin shakes his head and winks again. “Sorry, can’t show you. Wouldn’t go over too well with the humans.”

“He’s just saying that because he’s ugly,” Donghyuck interjects with a snicker.

Jaemin is unfazed. “No, really, it’s been so long since I took my true form it’s kinda hard to remember what I look like.”

“Sounds sad,” Yukhei says with a frown.

Jaemin shakes his head. “It isn’t, really. I’ve lived a ton of lives here on Earth, and they’ve all been very entertaining.”

“Literally,” Donghyuck adds.

Yukhei’s curiosity must show on his face, because Jaemin clarifies, “My job is to stay up here and keep the humans preoccupied. It’s a lot easier now with technology, because every time I breathe the whole world knows about it in three minutes. So I keep them entertained.”

“So you’re a celebrity?” Yukhei asks, brow furrowed.

“Yeah. This lifetime I’m a musician, but I’ve been tons of other things.”

“Like?” Yukhei prompts.

“Sorry, you don’t have the clearance for that,” Jaemin says with a smirk.

“But you’ve been famous every lifetime?”

Jaemin nods as he takes another sip of his drink. “More or less. Fame looks a lot different now than it used to.”

Yukhei’s still a little lost. “What does that have to do with sin, though?”

Jaemin chuckles. “Dude, I’m literally an idol. Like, that’s my actual title, you can look it up. Isn’t pride just the sin of thinking you’re too good for the man upstairs?” He raises an eyebrow. “And what better way to make them think that than giving them a false god to focus on?”

“So you’re a distraction?” Yukhei asks. Donghyuck looks like he wants to kick him again, but Jaemin starts speaking.

“At first, yeah. But then they see me, and how successful I am, and how good I look, and how many people I know, and they want all that too. So then they focus on themselves, which makes them selfish, and _that_ leads to all the other sins.” He slings an arm around Donghyuck’s shoulders. “That’s where our friends come in and finish the job.”

“I told you he’s the worst!” Donghyuck says proudly.

Jaemin feigns wiping tears from his eyes with the hand that isn’t resting on Donghyuck’s shoulder. “That means a lot coming from the son of the Legend himself.”

Pause. “You’re the _son of Satan?"_

Donghyuck glares at Jaemin, and Yukhei thinks Jaemin is either very brave or very stupid for making Wrath mad. “Yeah, but I wasn’t gonna tell you that.”

Jaemin just gives Donghyuck another one of his soft smiles, and the tension in Donghyuck’s shoulders instantly relaxes. “Sorry, Duckie, I thought he knew.”

Yukhei’s still having a crisis from across the table. “Wait. You’re the son of Satan, the literal Prince of Hell, and you just - You weren’t gonna tell me?”

Donghyuck swings his legs and _accidentally_ kicks Jaemin in the ankle. He lets out a hiss, then tells Yukhei, “I think he was afraid of that exact reaction. Maybe chill a little.”

Which is easy for him to say, but like, what the fuck. “That’s it,” Yukhei says, standing up from the table. “Donghyuck, it’s your turn.” He grabs Donghyuck’s hand, yanking him up from the table.

Jaemin grabs Cinnabun from Donghyuck’s lap just in time, and he pets her to calm her down while he tells Yukhei goodbye. “Have fun, Xuxi! Take good care of Duckie for me.” He winks again, and Yukhei needs to get the hell out of dodge because he has so many questions and no time to deal with Jaemin’s charms.

“I will. Bye!” Yukhei says shortly before dragging Donghyuck toward the door.

“Bye, Nana! Come home soon, don’t make us wait so long this time!” Donghyuck calls across the shop as they make their way to the door. Once they’re outside, Yukhei stops, and Donghyuck just stares up at him.

“What?” Yukhei asks, meeting his eyes. “Do your thing.” He shakes the hand that’s holding Donghyuck’s, and Donghyuck laces their fingers together. Then the tingling starts, and Yukhei braces himself for whatever the Grave Prince has waiting for him.

They’re in a car. Specifically, the back seat of a minivan behind two adults and a kid that can’t be older than ten. They’re still holding hands, and Donghyuck’s tattoo is back and Yukhei can feel his wings so at least he knows the humans can’t see them. But like, that doesn’t make this any less weird. Also, he barely fits in the tiny seat where Donghyuck’s pressed up against his side, but he isn’t exactly complaining about that.

Yukhei stays silent, even though it seems like nothing’s happening, because he’s learned that sins aren’t always as obvious as you’d think. They sit there motionless for a good kilometer or two before anyone speaks.

It’s the man driving, and Yukhei doesn’t pay close attention to what he’s saying but he does get the gist of it: he’s pissed because the car behind them won’t stop riding his ass, whatever that means. Yukhei looks back as the woman (presumably the driver’s wife) starts scolding him for talking like that in front of the kid, and yeah, he sees what the guy means. The car following them is practically riding their bumper it’s so close. There’s a lot more bickering from the front seat, and the kid seems unbothered like this is a regular occurrence. Yukhei still doesn’t care much about what the humans are actually saying, he just knows it’s getting heated and the driver looks like he’s about to pop a blood vessel or something.

Then he slams on the brakes, and Yukhei instinctively throws his wing out across Donghyuck’s chest to keep him from jerking forward from the impact of the car behind them crashing into the tailgate. The car lurches forward, and now the woman in the passenger seat is _really_ yelling and the kid is crying and the driver just looks smug, for some reason. The airbags didn’t even go off, it wasn’t that bad, he tries to reason. The woman’s having none of it. Yukhei’s neck hurts, and Donghyuck is coughing from inhaling a feather when Yukhei’s wing practically smothered him.

“What just happened?” Yukhei rasps as the driver pulls the car over, argument still in full force.

Donghyuck coughs one last time before finally tucking Yukhei’s wing back into his side. “It’s a brake check, dude,” he says simply. “Surely you’ve seen a car accident somewhere in all your miracle working.”

And yeah, he’s not wrong. “I’ve seen them from Heaven, yeah. I’ve never been in one,” Yukhei says like it should be obvious. “They’re scary as fuck. Why would anyone do this on purpose?”

The car comes to a stop on the side of the road, and Yukhei holds out a hand for Donghyuck after climbing out after the kid. Donghyuck takes his hand, hopping down onto the pavement, and doesn’t let go. “Yeah, no shit. I hate it every time.” Donghyuck cracks his neck, and Yukhei absently wonders how many times Donghyuck’s been through this. “Even if I can’t actually get injured, it still hurts. Road rage is a bitch.”

At this point Yukhei’s all but tuned out whatever the humans are doing standing in a little huddle over to the left, closer to the shoulder of the road. Yukhei and Donghyuck pay the passing cars no mind; it’s not like getting hit will kill them. “So you mean to tell me,” Yukhei starts, “you’re Wrath, the son of Satan, the Prince of Hell himself, and your job is to cause fender-benders?”

Donghyuck snorts. “Nah, I try to avoid wrecks if I can, but y’know humans tend to make a big deal out of stupid shit. Usually they just flip each other off, though.” Yukhei can’t even say he’s surprised at this point, not really. But he still expected something more...dramatic. Which he tells Donghyuck, obviously. “I'm no match for the wrath of your Boss, unfortunately. The dude's on another level." Yukhei's pretty sure Donghyuck shouldn't be calling God _dude,_ but he's already damned to Hell so what could God do about it, really? "I can show you something way cooler if you want, though, but I can’t do it here.”

That’s intriguing. “Are we done?” Yukhei clarifies, surveying the scene. The driver of the other car is on the phone, and the family they’d been riding with is still in a general state of disarray.

“Yeah, they’re just gonna trade insurance and file a police report. It’s boring,” Donghyuck says dismissively, waving his free hand. He gives Yukhei a questioning look, waiting for an answer.

Yukhei nods, and then they’re standing in an abandoned building in some industrial area that looks like it hasn’t been occupied in years. He isn’t even tingly, he’s gotten so used to this materialization thing. Maybe he should get Donghyuck to teach him; he’s forgotten how to do it, it’s been so long since he bothered coming down to Earth to personally deliver a miracle. That’s a conversation for another time, though, because Donghyuck drops his hand and walks into the center of the room, and he’s got this concentrated look on his face like he’s bracing himself, which would be alarming but Yukhei knows Donghyuck wouldn’t do anything dangerous. Not to him, anyway. Probably.

Then there’s the unmistakable smell of sulfur, and a tiny ring of flames starts licking at Donghyuck’s heels before slowing growing and climbing up his body till he’s engulfed in a blanket of fire. He’s glowing, and the flicker of the flames against the night sky and the way the light reflects in Donghyuck’s sharp eyes has Yukhei in a trance. It’s gorgeous. Donghyuck’s gorgeous.

“Hellfire?” is all he can say while he takes it all in.

Donghyuck’s face is the most relaxed Yukhei’s ever seen it. “This is my true form, or whatever. I have to hide it, usually, so I don’t freak anybody out.” Donghyuck smiles another one of those sharp grins, and Yukhei can’t help but smile back as he closes the distance between them. He’s close enough to touch Donghyuck, but he doesn’t. “This is my favourite spot,” Donghyuck goes on. “I come here when I need to...be myself.” He looks out the window just so he doesn’t have to meet Yukhei’s gaze.

“Why would it freak anybody out?” Yukhei asks honestly.

Donghyuck looks at him again, eyebrow arched. “Only me and my dad have this. Even demons are a little scared of me.” He barks out a laugh. “Except my friends, but that’s because they’re idiots.”

“I’m not scared of you,” Yukhei counters.

“You’re an idiot, too,” Donghyuck shoots back with an affectionate quirk of his lips.

Yukhei takes another step, so he’s ever so slightly closer to Donghyuck. He can feel the heat radiating off of him, now - can smell the sulfur even stronger. “I mean, yeah, but that’s not why.”

“Why, then?” Donghyuck asks, and Yukhei can’t tell if he’s teasing or genuinely curious. Knowing Donghyuck, probably a little of both.

“I know you better than you think I do, Hyuck,” Yukhei says, and Donghyuck’s eyebrows shoot up at the nickname, but he doesn’t interrupt, which is a first. “You’re annoying, and loud, and also the son of Satan, but you’re a lot more than that, too. You care a lot about your friends, and they obviously love you, or they wouldn’t all have their own personal pet name for you. And - Wait, is this why Renjun calls you the Full Sun?” He gestures vaguely to all of Donghyuck.

Donghyuck nods with a laugh. “Yeah, he says I take the sun with me wherever I go.” He rolls his eyes at how corny it sounds saying it out loud.

Yukhei, for his part, nods aggressively. “See? They see the good in you, and so do I. Demons aren’t as bad as the Boss always told us you are, and I think you try extra hard to prove that stereotype wrong, even if you pretend not to.”

Donghyuck crosses his arms. “And what makes you think that?”

Yukhei smiles at him, genuinely. “You have all this power, and literally the fire of Hell with you at all times, and you still don’t do anything to intentionally hurt anyone. You constantly bury a part of yourself just so no one will be uncomfortable - that’s so selfless. It’s stupid, but it’s selfless.”

Donghyuck’s fire flares up almost imperceptibly. “It’s not _stupid._ ”

Yukhei laughs. “Yeah, it is. You’re beautiful, and so is your heart. You should show everybody all of you, not just the parts you think they’ll like.”

Donghyuck just stares at him for a good minute, probably, eyes searching for something that Yukhei isn’t sure he finds. “So you’d be okay with me showing up to Heaven like this?”

“I would love that, actually,” Yukhei says with another laugh. “Imagine how stressed Kun would be.”

Donghyuck laughs now, too, light and free. “Holy shit, you’re right! I gotta do it now.” Yukhei smiles again, and closes the distance between them to intertwine their fingers. His hand sizzles a little, steam rising into the air, but then it starts to glow and Yukhei’s fine. Donghyuck looks down at their hands, holding them up to get a better look. “What did you do?”

Yukhei smirks, because he's got a few surprises of his own. “You really think the Boss would let us interact with demons if we couldn’t protect ourselves?”

“You ass,” Donghyuck says, bumping their shoulders together. “I thought I was gonna hurt you.”

“You would never,” Yukhei says with a cheeky smile.

Donghyuck looks up at him, and Yukhei can’t tell if it’s the flames sparking in his eyes or something else entirely. “Yeah, I would never.”

Yukhei is practically suffocating under the pressure in his chest, but then Donghyuck looks away and the moment breaks. “So,” he says as casually as he can manage, “you still wanna be my partner?”

Donghyuck gives him a smile that’s all teeth. “I’d love to.” He squeezes Yukhei’s hand for emphasis. 

“Sweet,” Yukhei says as he slings an arm across Donghyuck’s shoulders. “Let’s raise some Hell.”

Donghyuck’s flames burn brighter, lighting up with the smile on his face, and Yukhei knows he’s got his work cut out for him. But it’s fine, because it’s Donghyuck. He wouldn’t have it any other way.

**Author's Note:**

> this was such a good prompt i had a blast writing it!! prompter, i loved your idea thank you for letting me use it <3 i hope i didn't let you down ><;


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